# Lara Jill Miller
**Lara Jill Miller** (born 1967) is an American actress and voice actress from [Allentown, Pennsylvania](https://www.edgepedia.org/allentown-pennsylvania), best known for playing Samantha on the NBC sitcom *Gimme a Break!* for six seasons and, since the 2000s, for voicing a long list of animated characters in children's television and video games.[1](https://www.larajillmiller.net/about/resume/) • [2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/lara_jill_miller)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1967, Allentown, Pennsylvania[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/lara_jill_miller) |
| On-camera breakthrough | Series regular as tomboy Samantha on NBC's *Gimme a Break!*, six seasons[1](https://www.larajillmiller.net/about/resume/) |
| Education | NYU, 1991, Phi Beta Kappa and Magna Cum Laude, degrees in Politics and French; Juris Doctor from Fordham School of Law[3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0330070/bio/) |
| Legal career | Passed the bar exam in three states (New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania) and practiced law in New York City[1](https://www.larajillmiller.net/about/resume/) |
| Signature voice roles | Lisa Loud in *The Loud House*, Lambie in *Doc McStuffins*, Libby in *The Ghost and Molly McGee*, Kari in *Digimon*[4](https://www.larajillmiller.net/about/bio/) |
| Title roles in animation | Clifford the Puppy (*Clifford's Puppy Days*), Henry (*Henry Hugglemonster*), Juniper Lee (*The Life and Times of Juniper Lee*)[4](https://www.larajillmiller.net/about/bio/) |
| Recognition | Ranked No. 64 on VH1's 2005 countdown *100 Greatest Kid Stars*; three BTVA voice acting awards (2014, 2015, 2017)[5](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/lara-jill-miller/bio/3000215642/) |
## Early career on stage and television
Miller began performing as a child, and her first professional stage work came in dinner theater productions arranged by her parents.[6](https://sitcomsonline.com/larajillmillerbiography.html) Her Broadway debut was as [Amaryllis](https://www.edgepedia.org/amaryllis) in the revival of *The Music Man*, appearing alongside [Dick Van Dyke](https://www.edgepedia.org/dick-van-dyke) on Broadway and on the national tour.[1](https://www.larajillmiller.net/about/resume/) • [4](https://www.larajillmiller.net/about/bio/) That role led directly to her casting as the tomboyish Samantha on *Gimme a Break!*, the NBC sitcom starring [Nell Carter](https://www.edgepedia.org/nell-carter), on which she was a series regular for six seasons.[7](https://www.detpress.com/disneykidsandfamily/bios/lara-jill-miller/) During the show's run she also appeared in the 1986 Tri-Star film *Touch and Go*.[1](https://www.larajillmiller.net/about/resume/)
## Law school and return to television
When *Gimme a Break!* ended, Miller chose to finish her education rather than continue acting immediately. She graduated from New York University in 1991, [Phi Beta Kappa](https://www.edgepedia.org/phi-beta-kappa) and Magna Cum Laude, with degrees in Politics and French, then earned her [Juris Doctor](https://www.edgepedia.org/juris-doctor) at Fordham School of Law.[3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0330070/bio/) She passed the bar exam in three states, New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, all on the first attempt, and practiced law in New York City for a period that a 2000 *People* profile describes as 15 months.[3](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0330070/bio/) • [8](https://sitcomsonline.com/larajillmillerarticle1.html)
Her return to acting began with a recurring role as Kathy on Nickelodeon's sketch comedy series *The Amanda Show*, which ran for two seasons, followed by appearances on *All That*, *iCarly*, *Zoey 101*, ABC's *General Hospital*, and *Chicken Soup for the Soul* on PAX TV.[1](https://www.larajillmiller.net/about/resume/) • [7](https://www.detpress.com/disneykidsandfamily/bios/lara-jill-miller/)
## Voice acting career
Miller's voice work started with anime. She voiced Kari Kamiya on Fox's *Digimon* for three seasons and in the feature film *Digimon: The Movie*, and later took roles in *Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex* as the Tachikoma in the English dub.[9](https://www.larajillmiller.net/work/wp-content/uploads/LJM-bio-2013.pdf) • [10](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0330070/) She has described booking her first original-animation role, Clifford's Puppy Days on PBS, as the point when her voiceover career took off.[11](https://en.paperblog.com/a-chat-with-lara-jill-miller-or-you-know-kari-from-digimon-771907/)
Her children's-television credits now span the major networks and streamers. On [Nickelodeon](https://www.edgepedia.org/nickelodeon) she is the voice of prodigy Lisa Loud, along with Liam and [Persephone](https://www.edgepedia.org/persephone), on *The Loud House*; on Disney she plays Lambie, Doc's cuddly best friend, on the Peabody Award-winning *Doc McStuffins* and Libby Stein-Torres, Molly's best friend, on *The Ghost and Molly McGee*.[1](https://www.larajillmiller.net/about/resume/) • [4](https://www.larajillmiller.net/about/bio/) On PBS she has voiced Allie on *Curious George*, Izzie on the two-time Emmy-winning *SciGirls*, and the title character of *Clifford's Puppy Days*.[4](https://www.larajillmiller.net/about/bio/) Other roles include Fink on [Cartoon Network](https://www.edgepedia.org/cartoon-network)'s *OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes*, Cat on Amazon's *If You Give a Mouse a Cookie*, Widget on Nick Jr.'s *Wow! Wow! Wubbzy!*, Petunia Pig in Warner Bros.' *Looney Tunes Cartoons* on HBO Max, and Matilda in Disney's *Vampirina*.[4](https://www.larajillmiller.net/about/bio/) • [1](https://www.larajillmiller.net/about/resume/)
In 2019 she returned to anime as Haru in Netflix's *Beastars*.[4](https://www.larajillmiller.net/about/bio/) In an interview about her method, she explained that for *The Loud House* she saw no character art and was simply asked to perform girl voices from baby to teenager; the Lisa Loud voice came out of that audition, and she has said the casting depended as much on her on-camera acting background as on the sound itself.[12](https://news.amomama.com/212361-exclusive-interview-with-gimme-a-break-s.html)
## Title roles and singing
Three of her roles are title characters: Clifford the Puppy in *Clifford's Puppy Days*, Henry in Disney's *Henry Hugglemonster*, and Juniper Lee in Cartoon Network's *The Life and Times of Juniper Lee*, a series in which she starred for three seasons.[1](https://www.larajillmiller.net/about/resume/) • [4](https://www.larajillmiller.net/about/bio/) A 2004 *Pageantry* profile described her at that point as one of the most sought-after voice-over actors in the industry, with the Juniper Lee role newly airing and Clifford's Puppy Days already in its second season of production.[13](https://www.pageantrymagazine.com/magazine/features/2004/d04/SpotlightMillerD04.html)
Miller also sings. She performed the singing voice of Dorothy in NPR's acclaimed adaptation of *The Wizard of Oz*, alongside [Annette Bening](https://www.edgepedia.org/annette-bening), John Goodman, Rene Auberjonois, and [Robert Guillaume](https://www.edgepedia.org/robert-guillaume).[1](https://www.larajillmiller.net/about/resume/) • [6](https://sitcomsonline.com/larajillmillerbiography.html) Her recorded work includes the *Doc McStuffins* and *Henry Hugglemonster* soundtracks, the Children's Museum of Los Angeles' Readers' Theatre, and the Adiboo Discovery Series.[4](https://www.larajillmiller.net/about/bio/)
## Video games
Her game credits are extensive, particularly in the Kingdom Hearts franchise, where she voices Chirithy across *Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue*, *Kingdom Hearts III*, and *Melody of Memory*.[1](https://www.larajillmiller.net/about/resume/) • [14](https://www.mobygames.com/person/124438/lara-jill-miller/) She played Zip, Comrade Black, and other characters in the *de Blob* games for THQ, Jilly Teacup in Epic's *Fortnite*, and Ava Achiever and Crackshot Corsair in [Riot Games](https://www.edgepedia.org/riot-games)' *Legends of Runeterra*.[1](https://www.larajillmiller.net/about/resume/) • [15](https://www.metacritic.com/person/lara-jill-miller/) MobyGames credits her on 24 games.[14](https://www.mobygames.com/person/124438/lara-jill-miller/)
## Recognition
VH1 ranked Miller No. 64 on its 2005 countdown *100 Greatest Kid Stars*.[5](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/lara-jill-miller/bio/3000215642/) Her voice acting awards, as cataloged by [TV Guide](https://www.edgepedia.org/tv-guide), include three Behind the Voice Actors (BTVA) Television Voice Acting Award wins: Best Vocal Ensemble in a New Television Series in 2014 and 2017, and Best Female Vocal Performance in a Television Series in the Children's/Educational category in 2015.[5](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/lara-jill-miller/bio/3000215642/) Earlier nominations included two Young Artist Awards in 1985 and 1987 for her sitcom work.[5](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/lara-jill-miller/bio/3000215642/)
Her career path is sometimes cited in discussion of child actors: a KCRW business program on voice acting featured her among former on-camera child performers, including [Robbie Rist](https://www.edgepedia.org/robbie-rist) of *The Brady Bunch*, for whom nearly all subsequent work has been voice acting, and a 2004 *Pageantry* profile framed her animation career as the way she avoided the decline that follows many high-visibility sitcom runs.[16](https://www.kcrw.com/shows/the-business/stories/the-world-of-voice-acting) • [13](https://www.pageantrymagazine.com/magazine/features/2004/d04/SpotlightMillerD04.html)
## References
1. [Lara Jill Miller, Resume, larajillmiller.net](https://www.larajillmiller.net/about/resume/)
2. [Lara Jill Miller Movies & TV Shows List, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/lara_jill_miller)
3. [Lara Jill Miller Biography, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0330070/bio/)
4. [Lara Jill Miller, Bio, larajillmiller.net](https://www.larajillmiller.net/about/bio/)
5. [Lara Jill Miller Biography, Celebrity Facts and Awards, TV Guide](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/lara-jill-miller/bio/3000215642/)
6. [Lara Jill Miller Biography/Filmography, SitcomsOnline](https://sitcomsonline.com/larajillmillerbiography.html)
7. [Lara Jill Miller, Disney Kids & Family press bio](https://www.detpress.com/disneykidsandfamily/bios/lara-jill-miller/)
8. [Lara Jill Miller People Magazine article (January 1, 2000), SitcomsOnline](https://sitcomsonline.com/larajillmillerarticle1.html)
9. [Lara Jill Miller bio PDF, larajillmiller.net](https://www.larajillmiller.net/work/wp-content/uploads/LJM-bio-2013.pdf)
10. [Lara Jill Miller, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0330070/)
11. [A Chat With Lara Jill Miller, Paperblog](https://en.paperblog.com/a-chat-with-lara-jill-miller-or-you-know-kari-from-digimon-771907/)
12. [Exclusive: Actress Lara Jill Miller on Life after 'Gimme a Break!', AmoMama](https://news.amomama.com/212361-exclusive-interview-with-gimme-a-break-s.html)
13. [Spotlight on Talent: Lara Jill Miller, Pageantry Magazine (2004)](https://www.pageantrymagazine.com/magazine/features/2004/d04/SpotlightMillerD04.html)
14. [Lara Jill Miller, MobyGames](https://www.mobygames.com/person/124438/lara-jill-miller/)
15. [Lara Jill Miller, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/person/lara-jill-miller/)
16. [The World of Voice Acting, KCRW The Business](https://www.kcrw.com/shows/the-business/stories/the-world-of-voice-acting)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Film people and crafts › Film actors and performers › Voice performers and animation voice actors*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license